Automatic Analyzer Detects Sexually Transmitted Disease

Automatic Analyzer Detects Sexually Transmitted Disease

An automated immunoassay system has been expanded to include a broad range of infectious diseases.

A continuous random access analyzer with processing throughput of 200 tests per hour has been designed specifically for optimum efficiency and consolidation in medium- and high-volume laboratories. Laboratory clinicians will benefit, as access to high quality testing will streamline workflow leading to rapid diagnosis.

The advanced immunoassay system, called IMMULITE 2000, has 24 resident assays, which can be increased to as many as 96 diagnostic tests. The analyzer, manufactured by Siemens Healthcare Diagnostics (Siemens AG, Munich, Germany; www.medicalsiemens.com), has added more infectious disease diagnostic capability to the system. Included in the new panel of tests is one for syphilis, a sexually transmitted disease caused by the spirochetal bacterium Treponema pallidum.

Symptoms of syphilis may be mistaken for other diseases and go undiagnosed for many years. The late or tertiary stage can be fatal. According to U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC, Atlanta, GA, USA; www.cdc.gov), there was a 13% rise in syphilis infection rates from 2007 to 2008. The disease can also be transmitted congenitally from mother to child.

The IMMULITE 2000 assay menu includes tests for congenitally transmitted diseases, such as Toxoplasmosis, Rubella, and cytomegalovirus dis­ease. Diagnostic immunoassays are available for Hepatitis, Epstein-Barr virus, and Helicobacter pylori infections, as well as many metabolic and medical conditions.

David Hickey, executive vice president at Siemens Healthcare Diagnostics, said, “Consolidating routine and infectious disease immunoassay testing on to a laboratory automation solution addresses one of the laboratory’s biggest challenges – to improve operational efficiency while continuing to enhance the quality of testing results and patient care.”